Journal editor and TV freelance makes complaint about alleged police 'assault'

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The editor of a magazine and news website covering the government and public sector has made a formal complaint to Greater Manchester Police about an alleged assault by a police officer.

Stuart Littleford, who edits Government & Public Sector Journal (GPSJ) and is also a freelance TV producer, alleges he was assaulted by a police officer whilst filming for his work at the scene of a building collapse in the Glodwick area of Oldham on Wednesday.

The journalist claims he was grabbed by the officer, thrown off his feet and into a fire engine, where he hit his head and camera. In a report by GPSJ , Littleford says he was initially told he shouldn't be filming the incident by another officer.

"I explained I had no intention of filming anyone badly injured and always allow as much privacy and respect as possible for people at these incidents. I also explained I was a member of the press with a press pass and that I was filming this for possible use on local and national television, I then moved back at her request, standing with the rest of the onlookers and at no point did I attempt to cross any police lines," he tells the journal.

"When the rescue services did start to remove the casualty from the building I and other onlookers had been moved back at least 200 yards from the scene. I then answered a call on my mobile phone from, Greater Manchester Police's press officer for the Oldham division, returning my call about the incident from earlier on.

"As I started telling them I had an officer pushing me back, and deliberately obstructing my camera, the officer in question hearing this shouted that he was not pushing me back, assuming then that I was doing nothing wrong, I continued filming. I couldn't move any further back as there was a fire engine directly behind me and people to my right, as well as having a conversation with the police on the phone. Suddenly, without warning, the officer taking offence at what I had said on the phone, came up to me and said, "I f***ing will now though mate" and grabbed my coat with both hands, lifting me off the ground throwing me back along the footpath into the side of a fire engine." Littleford has posted video footage of bystanders' reactions to the alleged assault and will today have his formal complaint taken by the police.

"It's not as if I was being threatened with arrest or even warned about any wrong doing this was totally out of the blue and very shocking. I have supplied footage on incidents like the Oldham riots, protests, and disorder for news channels including Sky News, Granada News, BBC and ITN, and have never had this happen before at such a calm incident," he tells GPSJ.

A statement issued by Greater Manchester Police to Journalism.co.uk confirmed that a complaint had been made about a police officer on Wednesday: "Shortly after 4:20pm on Wednesday 19 May 2010, a man contacted Greater Manchester Police's Oldham division saying he wanted to pursue a complaint into the conduct of a police officer earlier that afternoon.

"An inspector from the division is due to meet the man on Friday 21 May 2010 to take the man's formal complaint. Inquiries into this incident are therefore ongoing."